A Change in Plans....

So this week seemed to be a little different-wait haven’t I said that before-like almost every week? Or maybe I’ve always taken it out, lol-regardless this week, plans were made and plans consistently changed throughout the week. In retrospect, it is somewhat entertaining how much plans for the week changed actually, and how quickly plans changed. Some plans slowly changed while others were quite drastic within the length of about five minutes. All in all-this week still turned about to be a good week, because regardless of the plan changes, sickness, trains running amiss, and confusion-every day there was something to smile and laugh about. Of course with having two little kids around-how can a person not find something to laugh or smile at?  That’s like not enjoying a nice cold drink on a hot summer day-just not possible. Anyway, it has surely been an interesting week at the Heinemann’s.

 

Schutzenfest:

If you remember, I attended festivals while I was in S. Germany as well. Well this festival is extremely different than where I had been. In S. Germany-the festivals seem to be so much more about the music, while here the Schutzenfest is to celebrate the achievements of the shooting clubs for that town/area. I played in the band I played in on Friday night. We marched through the town, and then at the tent we played for like two hours! But drinks were free-yay! I don’t have to pay to stay hydrated! I was entertained by the fact that throughout the performance, the other clarinetists were giving me instructions for each song. We only played maybe five of the tunes we practice Friday evening, and so I was sight-reading much of the music. By the end of the day, my normal response became, “k, I  think I got it, but I’m going to follow you”. And it worked pretty well-no one else realized that I had no idea what I was supposed to be doing or when I was supposed to stand or sit while playing! It was fun. By the time we were done, my hands were sore, and my lip was sore, and it was hot-I was ready to be done.

Plans go awry:

·         Montag: Planned to go swimming at the lake-canceled due to sickness

·         Mittwoch: planned to go to Netherlands with two other IFYEs nearby-the train never showed! This was a new experience not having the train appear. As soon as I could I called one of the other IFYEs that I was meeting to explain the situation and ask them to call Ines and ask her to come get me at the bus station. It was frustrating that my train didn’t come, but I didn’t have time to focus on that as I returned my tickets and then stood at the payphone to call Hanna and Ines trying to figure out to use a payphone! I have not used a payphone in so long that I had forgotten how, nevermind being in german. So that was an interesting adventure Wednesday morning. And no worries that my day may have been boring-remember I have two very energetic kids running around-they loved having me home to play with and I loved being there!

Other Events:

Horse Jumping Competition: On Sontag (the only day plans went normal), Ines, Talina (she rode her bike), and I  walked to the horse show, and it turned out to be a longer walk than we originally thought. It took us about a half hour walking-which doing the math of 1 mile to 15 minutes equals about 2 miles each way-talk about a morning workout! We got to the horse show and watched the horses warm up at first and talking about English style riding versus Western. I know nothing about horse shows, although I do love to ride horses. The horse show was a jumping competition, and as such the riders were dressed like jockey’s. They wore special boots, pants, and tops to compete in. In the USA-at rodeos and a few pictures I’ve seen of horse competitions-people are usually in jeans and a western shirt, with boots. I’m sure there are competitions where USA riders dress the same, but I have rarely seen a horse show itself to know so that was neat. I enjoyed watching the various competitors and horses-seeing the different speeds of each horse, the jumping styles of various horses, and trying to determine how experienced the horses were based on how they jumped. It was fun to watch and take pictures.   

“An American Supper”:

On Montag, I cooked an “American Supper”. It consisted of BBQ Pork Sandwiches, Creamed Corn (my family’s recipe), and fried zucchini. Originally I had planned on making potatoes, but due to time constraints and the fact that there is a lot of zucchini from the garden-I chose to make zucchini instead-with input from Kai. This meal is very quick and easy to make, and still one of my favorites. The corn was probably the most interesting as I had to convert measurements, and I was making two separate cream corns-one for me and one for the family (mine was with goat cheese since I can’t eat cow dairy products). I was not sure how the corn would turn out, but it was also good. Before eating we took a picture, and then everyone ate, and everyone enjoyed it.

On Dienstag, I also made chocolate chip cookies. I made the kid recipe of chocolate chip cookies, and I call them the “kid” recipe because this is the first recipe I remember making of cookies, and these cookies are very sugary-but they taste good and the kids loved them! The cookies were pretty much gone by the time I left.

Final Thoughts:

As I prepare to leave the Heinemann’s it is incredibly bittersweet. I have grown used to playing with Talina and Bjarne each day, talking with Ines and Kai and just hanging out. It is not easy to leave a place you have grown accustomed to or have enjoyed being so much. Maybe I should be used to this feeling by now from living and working in various areas-but I don’t think one can ever grow used to having to say goodbye. And so it is tough. But I look forward to staying in contact, and someday I hope to be able to visit again, or maybe someday the Heinemann’s can come and visit me in the USA and I can return the generosity they have shown me. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for a wonderful time here!